Naruto: The Fox Avatar
by The Red Star
Summary: Has been rewritten and reposted as Fox Avatar Remastered
1. Chapter 1

**I got the idea for this fic when I was reading Makai by Kaenin. It's a great story go read it. Anyway, I hope you like it!**

**LET THE STORY COMMENCE!**

It was just a normal day for Naruto. The villagers yelled at him, refused him food, some even hit him. He had been kicked out of the orphanage last week for defending himself against one of the workers. Since then, he had been living on the streets. And when night came, the villagers went on the nightly "Fox hunts". Naruto had long since given up trying to fight back against the villagers. They were hitting him harder than normal, using weapons, dealing mortal blows. They were trying to _kill _him.

"PLEASE STOP!" He shouted, begging for them to stop.

"Shut up you demon! This is payback! This is justice!" one of them shouted.

'_someone please stop them!' _Naruto thought.

There was a bright flash of red. The next thing Naruto knew, the villagers were sent flying back. Naruto looked up, and saw his savior. The man was over six feet tall, had crimson red hair, Blood red slitted eyes, was wearing blood red armor, like the Shodaime's, had a blood red Odachi stuck to his back via chakra, and he had nine _tails_ flowing behind him.

"You want to fight a demon? All right, then. Bring it on!" he said pulling his odachi off of his back. The villagers looked hesitant. They knew that if this was the real Kyuubi, that there was little they could do except cry and beg for mercy. So they did just that.

The man scoffed at their pleas for mercy. "What was it you said when that boy asked for mercy? 'This is payback! This is justice'" and he began killing the villagers. They stood no chance. Even the few Shinobi that were there were made short work of. It was a slaughter. Limbs were severed, heads were lost, no one was spared. When they were all dead, the man wiped the blood from his blade and kneeled down to tend to the shaking young boy.

"Are you alright?" the man asked. Naruto wasn't looking at him, though. He was looking at the blood stained street.

"They're all dead…you killed them…" Naruto said, clearly in shock.

The man sighed. "Yes, I killed them. They aren't going to hurt you anymore. No one is."

"You mean, you'll protect me?" Naruto asked, now looking at the man.

"Yes, I will protect you, raise you, and train you. No harm shall ever come to you while I'm around." the man said, still kneeling in front of Naruto.

"I have a couple of questions, though."

"I will do my best to answer them." the man replied.

"First, who are you, and do you know why they attacked me?"

"The answers are the same. You may call me Nero, but that's not what the village knows me as." Naruto looked confused. Nero continued, "They know me as the Kyuubi no Kitsune." Naruto looked shocked.

"But I thought the Yondaime killed you?"

"It isn't possible for a mortal human to kill me. He did defeat me though. He used the **Shiki Fuuin** to seal me into a newborn baby. That baby was you, Naruto." Naruto looked down.

"So that's why they always hurt me."

"Yes, that is why. They thought you were me."

"So I'm not a demon!"

"Actually, you are." Naruto looked even more confused. "You are not a demon because you carried me, but because of your heritage."

"You know who my parents were?" Naruto asked, surprise and joy in his eyes.

"Yes. Your father was the one who sealed me into you, the Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze." Naruto looked happy and angry at the same time.

"My dad was the Yondaime? How could he seal the Kyuubi inside his own son? And how come people treat me like they do if he's my father?"

"Your father said he couldn't ask another to sacrifice their child if he couldn't sacrifice his own. And as for the treatment, I don't believe anyone knew that you were his child. Now do you want to know who your mother is?"

"Who is she? Is she alive?"

"Her name is Kushina Uzumaki, and I believe she is with my lord in the fox realm."

"Why is she there?" Naruto asked, quickly getting confused again.

"She is there because someone from this village, I don't know who, tried to kill her as soon as your father left the hospital with you. My lord saw this and pulled her into the fox realm so that she could heal safely. As far as I know she's still there."

"Why would your boss let a human stay in his realm?"

"He wouldn't. Your mother is a Kitsune, Naruto, and because of that, you are a Kitsune hanyo."

"Does that mean I can go to see her?"

"Not yet, I'm afraid."

"Why not?"

"It's rather simple. My powers are still sealed inside of you, and you can't control yours. You need to be able to teleport to get there."

"How do we get your power out of me, then?"

"_We_ can't. Only my lord has enough power to break that seal. If you want to go to the fox realm, you will have to train to a point where you can teleport us there. It will take a number of years, if you want to do it." Nero explained.

"Let's do it! I want to see my Kaa-chan!" Naruto shouted. Nero chuckled.

"Alright, but take me to see the Hokage. I have a few things to say to the old man."

"You won't kill him, right?" Naruto asked. He didn't want the old man to get hurt, even if he kept all of this a secret.

"No. I may hurt him, but it will heal. I promise."

"Okay." Naruto, all healed due to his Kitsune blood, stood up and grabbed Nero's arm and led him to the Hokage's building. At first, the guards wouldn't let them in, but with a little… _persuasion_ from Nero, the remaining guard let them in. They had a similar problem with the Hokage's secretary, but she backed down as soon as Nero put his hand on his odachi's handle. She let them in.

"Hey Jiji!" Naruto said, grinning.

"Hello, Naruto-kun. What brings you here, and who's this?" Sarutobi asked, seeing the man's tails made his eyes widen.

"I am Nero, you people know me as the Kyuubi no Kitsune." in a flash, the Hokage's Anbu guards were poised to strike, and in another flash, they were all missing their left arms and Nero's sword was in hand.

"Don't do that." he ordered. The Anbu stayed down. Nero looked back at the Hokage, and saw that the man was in front of Naruto, kunai in hand.

"I won't let you hurt Naruto." Sarutobi stated.

"But Jiji, Nero hasn't even tried to hurt me."

"That's right. I'm kinder to the boy than your whole damn village. Or did you not know that they beat him relentlessly every day. I was in the boy's gut for 4 damn years, and not once did you or the Anbu that are at your beck and call_ ever_ help him. Why didn't you help him? And don't you _dare_ say that you didn't know. There's no way you couldn't have known."

"Naruto, go wait outside, please." Sarutobi said, looking back at Naruto. Naruto looked at Nero, who nodded. "I'll tell you everything later. Yell for me if someone tries to hurt you." Nero said

"Okay." Naruto walked out of the room. As soon as he shut the door, Nero grabbed Sarutobi by the throat and lifted him off the ground. He slammed him into the wall.

"Now listen here, you decrepit old fool. I want answers, and you're gonna give them to me. And don't even think about lying to me. No human can outsmart a 3,000 year old Kitsune." Nero said, his face getting a dark look. He let Sarutobi drop to the floor after he nodded to what Nero said. Sarutobi stood up and walked over to his desk.

"For starters, why haven't you helped the kit? With your connections, you could've kept the boy safe forever. Hell, you could've even adopted him into your clan. Why didn't you?" Nero asked.

"I tried everything I could. The Council fought me at every opportunity. They want Naruto dead! It took every bit of my power to keep them from executing him!" Sarutobi said.

"Bullshit! The Hokage is the ultimate power in a ninja village! The council holds no real power." Nero shot back.

"They were able to get more power when Minato died. Once I took the position back, I couldn't get it back! I truly want to help Naruto, but my hands are tied with keeping him alive."

"Well, then, I think it's time you and I work together." Nero said, with a mischievous smirk on his face.

"What do you mean?" Sarutobi asked.

"Simple. We both have one thing in common: we want Naruto to have a better life. But you can't act because the council won't let you, and I'm not a part of the village, so I have no part in the politics. So, we work together."

"How would we do this?" Sarutobi asked, curious as to where this was going.

"Well, there are many ways to do this. One: I kill anyone who tries to stand in your way. Two: you let me adopt Naruto. Three: I kill Danzo and the elders. They are the ones who get in the way, along with the civilian council, correct?" Sarutobi nodded. "Then I kill the elders publicly, along with telling the village that anyone that tries to harm Naruto, either directly or indirectly, will share their fate. That will scare the civilians into submission. It will also show the Shinobi that they are not above reproach. It should also help you regain some of your lost power." Nero said. Sarutobi was surprised at how thought out this plan was. Seeing his look, Nero chuckled. "What can I say? Foxes are crafty." Sarutobi chuckled.

"This plan of yours could work, but there's one problem." Nero raised an eyebrow. "Danzo has a secret Anbu squad called ROOT that he thinks I don't know about. They are completely and utterly loyal to him. They would sooner die than give up."

"Do you know where their base is?"

"Yes. I take it you will deal with them?"

"Call a Council meeting in one hour. Say it's about Naruto. While they're getting set up, I'll get rid of the ROOT. Watch Naruto until I get back. Where are they?" Sarutobi told Nero where the base was. "I'll be back in an hour. I have some _gardening_ to do." Nero told Naruto to wait with Sarutobi. Naruto agreed.

ROOT Base

"Sarutobi has called a council meeting regarding the Kyuubi brat. I must prepare. Wait for my signal until I return"

"Yes Danzo-sama!" Came the reply from the ROOT Anbu. Danzo wasted no time in leaving the base to head to his compound to prepare for the meeting.

The ROOT Anbu went about their daily duties. That is, until they heard a loud scream.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" When they found the body, they saw a LARGE pool of blood. The body, or body parts, were lying around the floor, scattered. The torso had every limb, and the head, severed from it. The torso had several cuts along it.

"Alert the others." The leader said. Two of the ROOT members complied. Three decided to stay and inspect the body for clues as to it's killer.

"We should report this to Danzo-sama." one of the ROOT members said.

"I wonder who could have done this…" the leader wondered.

"Why don't you ask?" a voice behind them asked. The ROOT Anbu turned, but before they could even fight back, their heads were cut from their shoulders. They fell instantly.

"Next…" Nero stated, shouldering his Odachi. He calmly walked into the center of the base. He came across 5 ROOT Anbu. They immediately attacked. "Fools" he said with a bored look on his face. One attacked with his tanto. Nero cut him diagonally in half. Then one tried a genjutsu. Nero slashed him from shoulder to hip before he could even finish the hand seals. "Two…"

The remaining ROOT Anbu decided to keep their distance and attack with ninjutsu. One was impaled before he could even start weaving signs. "Three…"

The two of them managed to get their jutsu out. "**Futon: Daitoppa! **(Wind release: Great Breakthrough)" "**Katon: Goukakyu no jutsu!** (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)"

The two jutsu combined made a giant fireball that hit Nero head on.

The two ROOT ninja smirked, thinking that they had killed him.

"You should know better than to try to kill a Kitsune with fire." Nero said as he stepped out of the fire, completely unharmed. "besides, you call those flames? Kitlings can make fire hotter than that." Nero was upon them before they could recover from the shock. He quickly severed their arms from their bodies.

"AAAAAHHHH!" they screamed, and Nero decapitated them both with one swing of his odachi.

"Pathetic. Let's find out if all of these ROOT ninja are as pathetic as you five were." Nero said, looking back at the bodies of the ROOT Anbu he just killed before moving to continue his "gardening"

Council Chamber

"Hokage-sama, why have you called us here?" a civilian council member asked.

"I have called you all here for an announcement regarding Naruto Uzumaki." Several of the Council members scowled at the mention of the boy.

"And what announcement would that be, Sarutobi?" Homura asked.

"I'm glad you asked, Homura. This announcement-" that was as far as he got before Nero walked in, blade in one hand, A ROOT Anbu in the other. He was also covered in blood, as was the blade of his sword. "also concerns a certain trio in this room." Nero finished for him.

"Nero!" Naruto shouted. "Hey squirt."

"Why are you holding an Anbu by the throat? And, more importantly, why are you covered in blood?" Hiashi asked.

"Oh, I just cleared out a ROOT infestation." Nero replied, smirking.

Danzo paled. He recognized the Anbu as one of his ROOT operatives. _'Does Sarutobi know about ROOT? And who is this man? Whoever he is, he must be powerful to take on my whole ROOT squadron. I need to formulate a plan.' _he thought.

"What do you mean a root infestation?" Choza asked.

"Ask Danzo. He should know." Nero said. Danzo's visible eye widened.

"Well, Danzo? What do you have to say for yourself?" Sarutobi asked with a smirk. Danzo tried to signal for his ROOT Anbu, but none came.

"Weren't you listening to me, Danzo?" Nero asked, "I destroyed your entire base! There is no one coming to help you. Or you two." Nero said, pointing his blade at Koharu and Homura.

"What have we done?" Koharu asked.

"You've been fighting the old man here's decisions regarding Naruto since the day he was born! You've been trying to get Naruto killed for the same amount of time. You have been a thorn in the old man's side as well as Naruto's for too long."

"So you're going to kill us for voting against you?" Homura asked.

"No, we're going to execute you two and Danzo for trying to kill Kushina Uzumaki, mother of Naruto Uzumaki, and wife of Minato Namikaze." At that revelation, everyone's, save Nero, Naruto, Sarutobi, and the elders, jaw dropped. The elders did look surprised, though.

"Kushina was the wife of the Yondaime?" Hiashi asked, rapidly regaining his composure.

"Yes. They married in secret to protect both her and their future family from his enemies." Sarutobi stated

"Do you have any proof backing these accusations?" Danzo asked.

"Quite a bit, actually. For starters, I found the order that you gave your ROOT Anbu to perform the deed." Nero said, holding up the scroll. "I also have this guy here. He was one of the agents who you got to perform the deed. Sarutobi, if you will?" Nero asked, handing the ROOT agent to Sarutobi. He quickly breaks the seal on his tongue and sends for Ibiki. Within minutes, he appears.

"You called, Hokage-sama?" Ibiki asked.

"Yes Ibiki. I need you to perform an interrogation in this room."

"Why here, Hokage-sama?"

"This has become a makeshift trial. This Anbu has information that we need."

"Yes sir. Inoichi-san, if you would please assist me…"

"Of course, Ibiki-san." Inoichi Yamanaka responded.

They immediately began working on breaking the ROOT agent's mind. Within minutes, they got it.

"Well, I'd say that's enough proof, wouldn't you?" Nero asked, looking at Sarutobi.

"Yes, a confession is more than enough. Now then, who here supports the execution?" Sarutobi asked, looking around the room. All of the clan heads, save the Uchiha, and even some of the civilians with more backbone raised their hands. "I see. Opposed?" The rest of the civilian council, Uchiha Fugaku, and the elders raised their hands.

"All right, then. By majority rule, Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane are to be executed immediately. Nero, if you will?"

"Gladly." Nero said, with a sadistic grin on his face. He shouldered his sword and begun to walk towards the elders, who tried to run. They were immediately surrounded by Anbu loyal to the Hokage. "Ah ah ah.. Don't try to run. You'll ruin my fun."

Before they could even try to do anything, Nero was upon them. "You're first." He said, looking at Danzo. He quickly severed his arms. "Hurts, don't it?" He said, still grinning sadistically. He then cut his legs off. "I'll finish you in a minute." Nero turned away from Danzo and immediately stabbed Koharu through the heart, killing her instantly.

"Now for you." Nero calmly walked toward Homura, who immediately started making hand signs. "Can't have any of that." Nero said, and chopped Homura's hands off, before decapitating him.

"Back to you, Danzo." Nero turned to Danzo, Who was extremely pale from losing so much blood. "Damn… you…" Danzo spat out.

"Not nice." Nero said, and quickly decapitated him as well.

"Pathetic." Nero said, sitting down next to Naruto and started to clean all the blood from his blade.

"Thank you, Nero." Nero nodded, not looking up from what he was doing. "Now then, anyone tries to harm Naruto here, either directly or indirectly, will share their fate. I also have decided that from this day forth, the civilian council will only deal with _civilian_ matters and leave things dealing with the Ninja side of this village to the Shinobi council and myself."

One of the civilian council members decided to speak up. "You can't do that, Hokage- sama!"

"Oh? Well then, let's put it to a vote. All for?" The entire Shinobi council as well as Sarutobi raised their hands. "Opposed?" The entire civilian council raised their hands. "Well then, by majority rule, the civilian council will from this day forward have no say in Shinobi matters."

"My last announcement is that Naruto will now be known as Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze. He will be living in the Namikaze compound. Nero here will also be living there as Naruto's Guardian. Any Questions?" Seeing none, Sarutobi stood up from his seat. "Very well, meeting adjourned." The council members slowly got up and left. The Anbu started to clean up the bodies of the dead council members. Nero stood up and looked down at Naruto.

"Hey, Squirt," Naruto looked up at him. "Let's go see your new home." Naruto smiled, and they started to walk out of the Hokage's tower.

Things were definitely starting to look up in Naruto's life.

**This was the first chapter. I hope you liked it. As always, review or I shall unleash my army of telletubbies upon you all!**

**Forever in the Sky,**

**The Red Star**


	2. Chapter 2

**Lloyd Neruameshi: The Pairing IS Naruto/ Tayuya, but it won't be right away. Right now, I'm thinking it will happen around chapter 7-8. I won't spoil anything, though. You'll just have to read and find out. MWAHAHAHAHA!**

**And with that, here's chapter two!**

It had been 2 years since the day that changed Naruto's life forever. And, needless to say, his life was greatly improved. Nero was, surprisingly, an extremely good guardian. He took very good care of Naruto. They had moved in to the Namikaze mansion the night after the council meeting. Naruto was amazed that the whole thing was his. As soon as he got there, he immediately started running around the mansion, looking around. He was ecstatic. Nero was impressed as well, though he hid it much better. Once Naruto had calmed down, Nero showed him his bedroom. As Naruto was technically the clan head, it made sense that he would sleep in the master bedroom. Naruto was even more amazed by this room.

For starters, the room itself was gigantic! It was about as big as Naruto's whole apartment. It had a king-sized bed that, according to Naruto, was extremely comfortable, and it even had it's own bathroom. When Naruto asked Nero where he would be sleeping, Nero simply stated that he would sleep in one of the guest bedrooms. Since that day, Nero had been teaching Naruto how to read, write, and how to think logically. He even taught him a little about combat strategy. One day, Naruto asked Nero when he would teach him to use his Kitsune powers, Nero told him that before he would teach him _how_ to use his powers, he first needed to learn _when _to use his powers. He told him he wouldn't teach him to use his powers until he was old enough to enter the ninja academy. Naruto left it at that, knowing he wouldn't be able to change Nero's mind.

Today was that day. Naruto got dressed quickly. Since he started learning from Nero, he had stopped wearing that orange jumpsuit, especially since he wasn't being overcharged anymore since Nero amputated that one merchant's arm. After that, he even got a discount at some stores. Now that he had his pick of clothing, he picked simple black Anbu pants, a black undershirt, and a faded orange jacket. He still wore orange, as it was his favorite color, but it was a bit more tasteful now. Naruto ran to Nero's room.

"Tou-san! Wake up! It's my first day at the academy!" Naruto said, charging into Nero's room.

"I know, that's why I woke up early." Nero said, walking out of his bathroom, fully clothed. Since Nero was now living with Naruto, he didn't wear his armor, though he still carried his odachi everywhere. He instead wore black pants, much like Naruto's, and a black shirt under a blood red overcoat that had a picture of the Kyuubi on the back. He still had his tails showing, not seeing a point in hiding them, as everyone already knew who he was. That had been an announcement along with them revealing Naruto's parentage. As soon as they revealed who he was, people were either calling for his head, running in fear, or begging for mercy. Sarutobi explained that Naruto was the only thing keeping Nero from killing them all. It was true, too. Naruto had made Nero promise not to hurt anyone just because they had hurt him in the past. Nero agreed, on the condition that if they hurt him or messed with him in the future, that he could react.

"Hurry up, tou-san! I don't want to be late!" Naruto said to his "father". Naruto had started calling Nero his father only a year after they had moved into the Namikaze mansion. When Nero asked him about it, Naruto simply stated that Nero was like a father to him. That made Nero happy. In the time that they had spent together, Nero had begun to think of Naruto as his own child.

"Hold your horses, Kit. The academy isn't going anywhere. Before we go, at least eat some breakfast." Nero said. Even with the mental training, Naruto was still impulsive at times.

"Okay, tou-san." So they walked into the kitchen which, like every other room in this mansion seemed to be, was HUGE! It had everything a master chef would need. Needless to say, neither of them knew what half of that stuff was. They managed, though.

After breakfast, they started walking towards the academy. They no longer received looks of hatred and anger. No, since Nero made himself known, they received looks of fear from most, admiration from some, and, oddly enough, Nero received looks of lust from most of the Konoha women. Most of them creeped him out. Though, the blatant ones he got from a certain Snake mistress, and the more subtle ones he got from a certain genjutsu mistress, in particular, had him _intrigued_.

They made their way to the academy. As Nero and Naruto walked into the academy, the teachers kept their distance, something they both had become used to. They just shrugged it off. After a few minutes of searching, they found Naruto's classroom. They walked inside.

"Hey, Naruto!" A feral looking boy came running up to them. "Hey Kiba." Naruto replied.

"Come on, buddy! Shikamaru and Chouji wanna see ya!" Kiba said, pointing to said people, who waved.

"Go ahead, kit. I'll talk to your teachers." Nero said to his "son", who smiled in return.

"Thanks, tou-san!" He said with a grin, then ran off to be with his friends. Nero looked around, seeing familiar faces, but not the teachers. So he asked one of the few people he DIDN'T hate in Konoha.

"Hey, Tsume." Said woman turned around.

"Hey, Nero. What's up?" Nero and Tsume had met enough times that one could consider them friends. Their sons hung out together enough times, and Nero liked to know who Naruto was associated with.

"Where are the teachers?" He asked.

"They're not here yet. They should be here soon. You gonna scare them?" She asked, the last part with a grin that almost mirrored Nero's own.

"Probably. They just need to treat him fairly, and I won't have a problem." Tsume nodded. She knew how people treated Naruto when Nero wasn't there to stop them.

"I look forward to seeing it." Nero just chuckles at her. They look at their kids. They are sitting and talking about how cool they'll be when they're ninja.

"Here they are." Tsume says. Nero turns to the door. Entering the room are two Chunin. One had his hair tied back into a pineapple shape and a scar across the bridge of his nose. The other had shoulder length silver hair. Nero could smell deceit coming from him. _'He's planning something. He'd better hope it doesn't involve Naruto.'_ he thought. The one with the scar started to speak.

"Hello everyone, I'm Iruka Umino, and this is my partner, Mizuki." The newly named Mizuki raised his hand in response and waved. "We'll be your teachers throughout your years in the academy, so let's try and get along. Now then, do the parents have anything to ask or tell us?" he asked. Nero walked forward and nodded to the door. They nodded in return and followed him out. As soon as the door was shut, Nero turned to them.

"As I'm sure you both know, I'm Naruto Uzumaki's guardian. And I'm also sure that you've heard how I react to people mistreating him." Seeing them nod, he continued, "I only have one thing to say then: treat him like you would any other student. If he fails, he fails because he got the question wrong, not because you don't like him, or anything like that. I'm sure you know what will happen should you try anything."

"Do not worry, Nero-san, we will treat him like a normal academy student. Just so I know what to expect, though, how smart is he?" Iruka asked.

"Naruto is extremely smart for his age. I have been training him in the art of strategy and the ninja ways since we moved into the mansion. Do not be surprised if he shows superior work than what you would be used to. He is what you humans call a prodigy."

"Wow. I didn't expect that. I look forward to teaching him." Iruka walked back into the class. As Mizuki was about to walk in as well, Nero grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Is there a problem, Nero-san?" He asked.

"I'll be clear with you on this. I don't trust you. I know you're up to something, and though I really don't care what, leave Naruto out of it or you will beg for death when I'm done with you. Clear?"

"Y-Yes, sir." Mizuki squeaked out. Satisfied, Nero let go and they walked back into the room, Nero acting as if nothing happened. He walked calmly back to where he was standing before, near Tsume, who was snickering at Mizuki's pale face.

"What did you say to him?" she asked.

"I merely warned him to leave Naruto alone. I just seem to have that effect on people." Nero said, not even changing his expression. Tsume had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Nero _really_ made things interesting around Konoha.

"I'll say. Fugaku nearly pissed himself when you _warned_ him." Tsume said, giggling at the memory. Naruto and Fugaku's son, Sasuke, had surprisingly enough become friends over the two years. Nero didn't trust the clan, and when Nero had warned them, he left them no quarter. He said "You even look at him funny, and I bury your whole damn clan." The Uchiha may have been arrogant, but they weren't stupid. The clan was still standing, yes. They weren't stupid enough to try and usurp the Hokage with the Kyuubi free.

"I didn't trust him. I still don't." To be honest, Nero _hated_ the Uchiha in general, save Sasuke and Itachi. The two of them were like brothers to Naruto. Ever since Madara, Nero hated the Uchiha. Nero looked towards Naruto. He was talking with Sasuke while getting glares from Sasuke's many fan girls. Nero shook his head at the fan girls.

"You don't seem to mind Fugaku's kids." Tsume noted.

"That's only because Mikoto taught them right. They haven't grown up to be arrogant."

"True." The parents said goodbye to their kids and started leaving. Nero said goodbye to Naruto and told him that his training would start when he got home. Naruto was ecstatic upon hearing that. As soon as Nero left the academy, He went to the weapon shop.

"Hey." Nero said to the shop owner.

"What do you need, Nero?" questioned Tetsu Higarashi. Tetsu was always kind to Naruto, never overcharging him. Thus, Nero liked him. He frequently bought supplies from this shop to teach Naruto with.

"I'm starting Naruto's sword training today. I need to get him a good blade. What do you recommend?" Nero asked. Tetsu had an eye for good weaponry. Nero had learned to trust that eye.

"Well, you're gonna teach him your fighting style, right?" Nero nodded.

"Then he's gonna need a longer sword, right?" Nero nodded again.

"Correct. My style can only be performed with a long sword. He is too young and short to be able to use an Odachi, so I was thinking of giving him a Nodachi. Which do you recommend?" Nero replied, then asked.

"A Nodachi would work fine, I think." Tetsu walked over to a wall rack that had a ton of Nodachi on it. "But which one?"

"I'm not looking for anything special. So long as he can wield it and it will withstand the training, it's fine." Nero replied.

"So a more durable blade, then, given that it would need to be able to block your blade without shattering. Yours is made out of a special metal, right?"

"Yes. You can only get it in my native realm. I plan on getting him one like mine when he completes his training."

"All right, then. I think this one will do." Tetsu says, grabbing a Nodachi off of the wall rack. It was a rather simple weapon, as far as Nodachi's go. The blade was silver, reflecting the light rather well. It had a simple square guard. The hilt was navy blue in color. It had a simple black sheath.

"I made it more durable than I make most of my blades, so as long as you maintain the blade, it should stand up to anything you do. If it doesn't, just bring it down here and I'll try to fix it for ya." Tetsu says.

"Thank you. Will this be enough?" Nero asked, throwing a bag of coins to Tetsu. When he looked into the bag, his eyes widened.

"This is more than enough! I can't accept this!" Tetsu said, trying to give the bag back.

"You can and will. You have given Naruto and myself huge discounts in the past. This is my way of repaying you." said Nero, a small smile forming on his lips.

"Thank you, Nero." was all Tetsu could say.

"Thank _you_, Tetsu. Tell Tenten I said hi." Nero replied, grabbing the Nodachi and calmly walking out of the shop. As he was walking back to the mansion, he ran into one Kurenai Yuhi.

"Hello, Kurenai-san" He said.

"Hello, Nero-sama." She replied politely.

"No need to be so polite, Kurenai-san. Please, just call me Nero" he stated, smiling at her

"Hai, Nero-kun." she replied, blushing. Kurenai, like most women in Konoha, thought that Nero was, as they put it, drop dead sexy. Though she hid it much better than most.

"That's better, Kurenai-chan. I heard that you plan to take the Jonin Exam when it comes along. I have a feeling you will succeed." Nero said, walking to the mansion, with Kurenai walking beside him.

"Really? I don't know."

"If you wish, I could assist you in training for the exam when I'm not training Naruto."

"R-Really?"

"Of course, Kurenai-chan. Naruto wouldn't mind, and I would be happy to help." He replied.

"Sure, Nero-kun. I'd like that." She said. They continued walking in silence, until Nero spoke up.

"What are your plans for today, Kurenai-chan?" Nero said, looking at her.

"I don't have anything planned today. Why?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Well, I have nothing to do until Naruto gets out of the Academy, so I was wondering if you would like to do something." Kurenai blushed.

"L-Like a date?" she stammered, not believing that the eye candy of the women of Konoha was asking her out.

"Sure." he replied, smirking at her reaction.

"Okay, Nero-kun. Want to get some dango?" she asked.

"Alright." They walked to the dango stand together. When they walked in, they saw a familiar figure at the bar.

"Hey, Nai-chan. Hey, Nero-kun." Anko said, looking back at them.

"Hello, Anko-san." Nero replied politely.

"Hey, Anko." Kurenai replied casually.

"So what are you two doing here?" Anko asked as they sat down at the bar and made their orders. Kurenai sat next to Anko, while Nero sat next to her.

"Getting dango." Nero replied, making Kurenai giggle.

"What are you two on a date or something?" Anko asked, at which Kurenai blushed. Nero showed no visible reaction.

"Yes. Is there a problem?" Nero asked, while Kurenai looked at him, surprised that he wasn't even phased by Anko's usual behavior.

"No, I'm just shocked that Nai-chan here actually agreed to go out on a date with someone." said Anko.

"Ah, yes, I believe her reputation is as 'Konoha's ice queen'." Nero said, looking at Kurenai. The waiter delivered their dango.

"Don't touch my plate, Anko." Kurenai said, grabbing her hand. Anko pouted.

"Here." Nero said, handing her a plate. Anko quickly grabbed the plate and immediately started devouring the dango.

"Why'd you give her your plate?" Kurenai asked.

"I didn't." Nero said, eating a piece of dango. " I ordered another plate."

"Why?"

"She's your friend, right?" seeing her nod, he continued. "I was being nice. Besides, She has the same eyes as Naruto." At that, Anko stopped eating and Kurenai's eyes widened.

"What do you mean?" Anko asked, trying to hide her emotions.

"You've had a life similar to Naruto's, haven't you?"

"How did-" She started, only to shake her head, "No, it doesn't matter. Yes, I have, though, not as bad as the gaki." Anko told Nero everything about her life, her apprenticeship, and even her curse seal.

"Can I see the seal?" Nero asked.

"Why?"

"I may be able to get rid of it."

"How?" Kurenai asked, knowing that the Sandaime himself couldn't remove it.

"I'm over 3,000 years old, Kurenai. You tend to learn a few things in that amount of time."

"I can show it to you, but can we go somewhere more private?" She asked, not wanting everyone to know about the seal.

"Sure, we can go to the Namikaze mansion." So Nero paid the guy at the stand for his, Kurenai's, and Anko's meals, and led them both to the mansion. They gaped at the size. Nero led them inside. They walked into the living room.

"Show me the seal." Nero said. Anko just nodded. She stood up and removed her overcoat. She turned around so that Nero could see it better.

"Hmm…" Nero started examining the seal. "Can you channel some chakra please?" Nero asked, still looking at the seal. After further examination, he told them to stay there. After a few minutes, he came back with a scroll and ink brush. He started to write something on a small part of the scroll. After he finished writing, he held it to her neck.

"**FUIIN!**" He shouted, funneling youki into the paper. Anko felt a stinging sensation in her neck. After about 10 seconds, he removed the paper from her neck and sealed it into the scroll. "It's done." he said simply, making their eyes widen.

"Wha… How?" they asked almost at the same time.

"Youki. As a Kitsune, I have access to demonic energy. This energy is similar to what your seal was powered by. Thus, it was simple for me to remove it from you."

"But I thought that your power was still sealed within Naruto." said Kurenai.

"It is. I still have control over it, though, so I could manipulate what was within her from the seal." replied Nero.

Anko was overjoyed. This man had finally freed her from the curse that Orochimaru had put on her. So she did what she thought was the best way to thank him. She kissed him. Right on the lips. Nero's eyes widened a bit, Kurenai's were as big as dinner plates, and she was red with jealousy. After a little bit, she broke the kiss.

"Thank you, Nero-kun." Anko said, putting on her overcoat and walking out the door, shaking her rear.

Nero saw how angry that Kurenai seemed to be over the kiss.

"Jealous, Kurenai-chan?" he asked, smirking. She turned to face him, blushing.

"I… uh…" she was unable to form coherent words at the moment. Her mind was racing.

"Do you want a kiss, too?" he asked, stepping closer to her. Kurenai blushed a red that would put Hinata to shame. And without any warning, Nero leaned down and captured her lips with his own. Kurenai's eyes widened again.

She almost instantly responded to the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck, while his arms snaked around her waist. He snaked his tongue out, licking her lips, asking for entry. She opened her mouth and darted her tongue out to meet his in a passionate tongue war. After a few minutes longer, they broke apart, Kurenai's face flushed, both gasping for breath. They just stared at one another for a while, not braking the holds they had on each other. Kurenai broke the silence first.

"So, uh… what does this mean for us?" she asked.

"What do you want it to mean?" he responded.

"Well, I'd at least like to see you more often."

"All right, then I guess that makes you my… what's the term you people use? Oh yeah, I guess that makes you my girlfriend."

Kurenai smiled, kissing him lightly on the lips. "I can live with that."

"Isn't it almost time for the academy to get out?" he asked suddenly.

"Oh yeah, you should go get Naruto. Want me to go with you?" she asked.

"Sure. After all, you and he will have to meet officially if you're going to be my girlfriend." He said. She nodded, and they headed for the academy, hand in hand.

When they had arrived at the academy, class had just gotten out. Kids were running out of the building for home. Some parents, like Nero, had shown up to walk their kids home.

"Hey, Tou-san!" Naruto shouted running up to his father. "Who's the pretty lady?" He asked, looking up at Kurenai.

"This is my girlfriend, Kurenai, Naruto."

"Hi! I'm Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze!" Naruto said, with all the enthusiasm an 8 year old could muster.

Kurenai giggled. "Hello Naruto. My name is Kurenai Yuhi."

"Hey tou-san, what's that?" Naruto asked, pointing to the wrapped object in Nero's right hand.

"Open it and find out." Nero replied, handing it to Naruto. Naruto quickly unwrapped the object, and gasped when he saw it.

"My own sword?" he looked up at Nero, who was smiling at him.

"You'll get your _real_ sword when you graduate, but until then, I think this will do."

Naruto hugged his father's legs, shouting "THANK YOU!" over and over.

"Naruto, do you want to learn how to use it or not? I can't teach you if you don't let go." Nero replied, looking down at the boy.

"Right! Let's get started!"

"I think we should get home first." Nero replied, sweat- dropping at his son's eagerness.

"Do you mind if I stay and watch?" Kurenai asked once they arrived at the mansion.

"Sure. Come on in." Nero answered, smiling at her. Naruto had already bolted for the training courtyard. Nero and Kurenai chose to walk, however.

They quickly got to the courtyard. Naruto was in the center of the courtyard, having ditched his orange jacket, holding his Nodachi. Seeing this, Nero discarded his overcoat and hefted his blade in his hand. He walked to the center of the courtyard, a few feet away from Naruto.

"Alright, you will be learning my own personal style, as I don't use any specific one."

"Cool. Hey, tou-san, why don't you use any one style?" Naruto asked.

"For a few reasons. One, it keeps my enemies on edge if I keep switching styles, two, every style has at least one weakness. By knowing multiple styles, you won't have any critical errors, and if you master multiple styles, like me, you will have no weaknesses."

"You have to have one weakness, tou-san." Naruto challenged.

"Not when it comes to swords. I devoted 500 years of my life to learn the ways of the sword. Doing so has made my technique perfect. No human blade could ever outmatch me." Nero explained.

"Then I'm gonna be the first one to beat you!" Naruto exclaimed. Nero smirked

"We'll see, won't we?" and so, for the next 3 hours, Nero drilled Naruto in the basics of kenjutsu. Kurenai was amazed at the stamina of both of them, wondering what uses Nero's stamina would have _outside _combat. When they eventually stopped for dinner, Kurenai asked them if she could make dinner for them. After training for 3 hours, they quickly agreed. The dinner she made was rather simple, but it was better than anything they'd ever cooked.

"That was delicious!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yes. It really was, Kurenai. You are a very good cook." Nero said, smiling at her.

"Yeah, you should come over more often! Or you could stay here!" Naruto said. Nero looked at him, while Kurenai blushed at the thought of living with Nero.

"Naruto, calm yourself." Naruto sat back down. Nero looked towards Kurenai, who was still blushing. "I agree that you should come over more often. As to moving in… the mansion is definitely large enough." Nero said. Kurenai went wide-eyed. He wanted her to move in with him?

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"Do you want to move in with us?" he asked. She almost tackled him to the ground and kissed him passionately on the lips. After a moment, they separated.

"How's that for an answer?" she asked, smirking. Nero only growled deeply and kissed her with as much passion as she had kissed him with. Naruto stared in shock at the two adults that were now making out on the table.

"Uh…" the two adults were awoken from their passion filled trance by a very confused and shocked Naruto. They looked at their bodies' positions. Kurenai was laying on her back on the table, her shirt opened slightly, showing some impressive cleavage. Nero was on top of her, his shirt somehow missing. They quickly got up and straightened out their clothing, Nero looking for his shirt. He found it on the other side of the room and quickly put it back on. When they looked back to Naruto, they found him still in shock. So Nero did the one thing he knew would wake him up. He leaned closer to Naruto, and shouted, "NARUTO! ICHIRAKU'S HAVING AN ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT RAMEN SPECIAL.!"

Naruto snapped out real quick, looking around for his ramen. Not seeing any, he decided to drop it. They spent the rest of the night talking, mostly about Kurenai, as Naruto didn't know anything about her and Nero was eager to learn more about his new girlfriend. Noticing that it was getting late, Kurenai decided to spend the night, rather than head home. Saying goodnight to Naruto, Nero showed her to what would become her new room. After a quick kiss goodnight, he left her and headed to Naruto's room.

"Hey, kit" Nero said, opening Naruto's bedroom door. Naruto was already in his pajamas, walking towards the bed.

"Hey, tou-san. Is the pretty lady gonna stay with us?" Naruto asked. Nero smirked.

"Yes, Kurenai will be moving in with us. I'm helping her move her stuff here tomorrow." Nero replied. Naruto grinned.

"Good." Naruto said. Nero raised an eyebrow.

"Good how?"

"Good because it means my family is growing!" Naruto said, grinning ear to ear.

"Alright, get to bed, kit. You got school tomorrow, and we're still training, so you're going to need your rest." Nero said, turning back towards the door.

"Goodnight, tou-san."

"Goodnight, kit."

Nero shut the door, heading for his own bedroom. Naruto smiled, lying in his bed. He was finally starting to learn how to use his fox powers. In only four years, he was going to see his kaa-chan again, and Nero might be able to get his power back! Just four years.

And what a four years they would prove to be…

**And done! This story is a lot longer than I had originally intended it to be, but I just couldn't stop it without leaving something out.**

**On another note, I forgot the disclaimer in the first chapter, so I'll just put it here.**

**Disclaimer: I IN NO WAY OWN NARUTO! I ONLY OWN THE NERO CHARACTER!**

**That's better. Also, my stories will not be at any set length, though I do try to keep them between 3 and 4 thousand words. My next chapter will probably be a long one, so look forward to it!**

**READ AND REVIEW OR I WILL USE THE ALMIGHTY POWER OF CHUCK NORRIS' BEARD TO KILL YOU ALL!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello People! This chapter is something I have been waiting to write since I got the idea for this story! It reveals a lot of things, brings new ideas, and has a new OC! If you don't like, don't read. **

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO! I OWN ONLY MY OC'S!**

**And without further ado, LET THE READING COMMENCE!**

4 years have passed since Naruto started the Ninja Academy. In those 4 years, a great many things have happened.

In terms of Naruto's training, It was going quite smoothly. He had mastered the **Kitsune Henge** to the point that it was instantaneous. His elemental manipulation was moving along slowly, since Kitsune could control all elements, but Nero told him that his control would improve once he had more than one tail. His **Kitsune-bi **was so far his best attack. It was hot enough to melt a human body in seconds. As for the art he was working his hardest to master, **teleportation**, it used too much youki, but he could perform it well enough.

His physical abilities were extremely impressive. His hand to hand prowess was extraordinary. Not that surprising, given that Nero only held back enough so as not to kill him. His Kenjutsu prowess was, for lack of a better word, amazing. Nero pushed Naruto very hard when it came to Kenjutsu. Naruto wanted to be as good as Nero, and, while he wasn't there yet, he was already good enough that Nero was certain he wouldn't lose a fight against another swordsman. Naruto still used the Nodachi Nero gave him. He took it everywhere with him, even the academy, it was always strapped to his side.

In the Academy, Naruto was one of, if not the best in the class. Iruka was very impressed with the boy, and if anyone asked, he had nothing but good things to say about the blonde boy. Sasuke, surprisingly enough, took Naruto's being best very well. His father, however, did not. He told Sasuke that he was of the Uchiha clan and "Should show that Namikaze brat that our clan is best." Itachi and Mikoto had heard that, and told Sasuke later that he needed to follow his own path, and become strong when and how he wants to. Naruto and Sasuke frequently sparred together after those two conversations, and found that they worked surprisingly well together. After Sasuke told Itachi and Mikoto that he and Naruto were still friends, Itachi agreed to train Sasuke in his free time.

As for Nero, he and Kurenai had grown close over the last 4 years. They now shared a room, as after Kurenai passed her Jonin exams the two had… _celebrated_. Neither of them got that much sleep that night, and Kurenai walked with a limp the next day. Kurenai and Anko were still friends, though Kurenai liked Nero as well, she knew that Kurenai and Nero were perfect for each other. Over the course of the past four years, Nero had trained Kurenai as well. She was now far better in Taijutsu than she used to be, and she knew a few new Kitsune Genjutsu. They weren't as potent as they normally would be, as she used chakra opposed to youki, but they were still extremely effective. Nero had yet to mark Kurenai as his mate, as he lacked sufficient youki to turn her into a Kitsune with the mark. When he told her about the mate mark, what it stood for, and what it did, she was ecstatic. She couldn't wait until he got his power back.

Naruto never really had problems at the Academy, as the teachers were too scared of Nero to try anything, and most of the kids left him alone. The only ones that didn't, however, were, obviously, his friends, and, sadly, Sasuke's fan girls. They didn't like him being near their "Sasuke-kun". Honestly, they both found it disturbing. The worst one, however, was Sakura Haruno. She was the epitome of a fan girl. She was constantly trying to hit Naruto for any reason whatsoever. Naruto was one step away from slicing her arm off should she try again, and Sasuke was thinking something along those lines as well. Naruto helped Sasuke hide from his fan girls frequently at his house.

Today was Naruto's graduation day. Naruto had calmed down considerably since he started going to the academy. He had learned to control his excitement and emotions, with help from Kurenai and Nero. He quickly took a shower, brushed his teeth, got dressed, and strapped on his Nodachi. His clothing had changed slightly since he was 8, as he had exchanged the jacket for a coat, much like the Yondaime's, but his was rusted orange, and had black flames licking the bottom. He calmly walked to his "Parents" room. Naruto didn't call Kurenai his mother because he knew his birth mother was still alive, but he still considered her one of his parents. When he got to the door, he knocked. Naruto hadn't rushed into rooms since he walked in on Kurenai and Nero making out on their bed. Luckily, they were both clothed at the time. But they told him to always knock from then on. After about a minute, Nero opened the door, without a shirt on and looking extremely tired.

"Rough night?" Naruto said, trying not to laugh at the look on his father's face. Nero growled in response.

"Just wanted to remind you that graduation day is today, and I want to go to the fox realm tonight." Naruto said. Nero nodded.

"I'll tell Kurenai. I'll see you after you graduate. You eat yet?" Nero asked.

"I was about to make something. You don't have to feed me, you know." Naruto replied, already walking towards the kitchen.

"All right. Say hi to Sasuke for me." Nero said. Naruto simply waved his hand in response. Shrugging, Nero shut the door and turned back to see Kurenai sitting up, rubbing her eyes cutely.

"Morning, hime." Nero said. Kurenai smiled.

"Morning, Nero-kun."

"Naruto's about to leave for the academy." He said, laying back down on the bed, Kurenai immediately snuggling up against him.

"I hope he passes the exam" she said. He kissed her forehead lightly, making her sigh in content.

"He will, hime. He will." the two snuggled close together, not wanting to leave the other's warmth.

Konoha Academy

Naruto was sitting in his usual seat, next to Sasuke. He sat there as protection from Sasuke's fan girls, both for him and Sasuke. And, right on cue, Sasuke's two biggest fan girls rushed the door, fighting each other to get to sit next to him. When they finally got in the classroom, they looked towards Sasuke and saw Naruto sitting next to him.

"NARUTO-BAKA!" Sakura yelled. Naruto didn't even look in her direction.

"Shut up, Sakura." He said, which only served to make her angrier. Ino had already taken her seat. Sakura was about to charge our favorite blonde, who was fingering the hilt of his Nodachi, when Sasuke, who saw that Naruto was about to kill her, and was tempted to let him, decided to diffuse the situation.

"Sakura, shut up and sit down. You're annoying me." he said, his face a mask. Sakura was all too happy to do anything that her crush wanted, and sat in her normal seat, after glaring at Naruto, who promptly released a minute fraction of his killing intent at her. That small amount was enough to make her avert her eyes and start shaking.

Iruka and Mizuki walked in not a minute later. After making sure everyone was here, the two Chunin started speaking.

"Good morning. I'm sure you all remember that the graduation exam is today. If you manage to pass the exam, you will officially be genin of Konoha." Iruka went on to explain that they would be testing everything that they covered, including a written exam, marksmanship, Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu tests. Whether or not they would pass was determined by their abilities overall. First up: the written exam. Naruto didn't have any issues with this one, as Nero had drilled strategy and the way of the ninja into his head. History wasn't important on the battlefield. He had done well enough. Once he was finished, he gave his paper directly to Iruka, as he didn't trust Mizuki anymore than his father did.

After everyone's tests were handed in and graded, they moved to the training fields for the marksmanship test. No trouble there, either. Accuracy was another thing that Nero had drilled into him, saying "A ninja doesn't miss." While he didn't get the highest score EVER, he was pretty good on that as well.

Once everyone had performed that test, they moved to the clearing for the Taijutsu test. The test was that they had 10 minutes to lay one blow on Iruka or Mizuki, depending on who the tester was. For quite a few students, it took the full ten minutes to land one blow. Then Sasuke was up. Looking at Iruka, he waited until Mizuki started the spar. As soon as it was declared, Sasuke dashed forward. Iruka actually had to try to avoid getting hit by Sasuke, who was using his family's Taijutsu style with all the skill and ability he had gained from sparring with Itachi. It only took Sasuke a minute and a half to get a hit on Iruka, and he got three, not one. Iruka congratulated Sasuke for passing, and Sasuke walked out of the arena, ignoring the screams of his fan girls. He and Naruto simply nodded to each other. Eventually it was Naruto's turn. He was up against Mizuki.

As soon as Iruka gave the signal, Mizuki attacked. His charge was ineffective, however, as Naruto dodged every blow. After only thirty seconds, Naruto got bored and decided to end it. And end it he did. He hit Mizuki in the stomach it sent him out of the arena and halfway _through_ a tree. No one could debate that he passed.

After that was done (and Mizuki was woken up), they headed back inside for the Genjutsu and Ninjutsu part of the exams. First up: Genjutsu.

For the Genjutsu exam, you had to detect and dispel a Genjutsu that would be placed on you by one of the instructors. No problems there, either. Naruto and Sasuke easily passed, due to Kurenai and Itachi's training, respectively.

Lastly, there was the Ninjutsu exam. You had to be able to successfully perform the three basic academy techniques, the** Kawarimi**, the **Henge**, and the basic **Bunshin**. No problems for Sasuke there. Naruto, however, was a different story.

"Okay, Naruto, start with the **Henge**." Iruka said. Naruto nodded. Seallessly, he transformed himself into Iruka, surprising Iruka and Mizuki.

"How did you do that without seals?" Iruka asked.

"It's a special version of the technique my father taught me. It's an actual transformation, opposed to an illusion." Naruto explained, changing back.

"All right, then. Continue." Iruka said. Naruto quickly substituted himself with one of the chairs in the classroom. He then switched back after about a second.

Nodding, Iruka said, "Last is the **Bunshin**." Naruto nodded. He put his hands into a familiar cross shaped seal.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" with a puff of smoke, there were 12 Naruto's. Iruka's jaw dropped.

"Naruto… how do you know that technique?" Iruka asked.

"My dad taught it to me. He said I have too much chakra for the regular Bunshin, so he taught me the **Kage Bunshin**." Naruto explained. Iruka nodded.

"Alright then, you pass the Ninjutsu exam. Now I'll tally your scores… overall… you pass! Congratulations, Naruto! You are now officially a genin of Konoha. Pick which headband you'd like." Iruka said, putting three headbands on the desk. They all had the same symbol, but they had different band colors. One was blue, a color that most Konoha Nin seemed to wear. There was also a red one and a black one.

"I'll take this one." Naruto said, grabbing the black one. He attached it to his belt (Think Gaara) and walked out of the room, sitting down next to Sasuke.

"So you passed, huh?" Sasuke said, seeing Naruto's headband.

"Yeah. No problem."

"Wonder whose team we'll be on…" Sasuke mused. Naruto shrugged.

"Dunno. We probably won't be together, though. With the two of us being Rookie of the Year, and second best, no offense, the team wouldn't be balanced if we were."

"Good point. Still, I wonder…"

"I don't know. I just hope we're not on the same team as one of your fan girls." they both shivered.

"That would be a fate worse than death. And it likely WOULD get us killed. None of them have any skills. How Sakura and Ino graduated at all is beyond me." Sasuke commented, looking over towards them.

"What were their ranks in the class?" Naruto asked.

"Sakura was Kunoichi of the Year, and Ino was somewhere in the middle." Sasuke answered.

"Great. That means that I'm probably gonna have Sakura on my team. At least you won't have to worry about you getting Ino."

"Yeah, I guess, besides the scores, there's that Ino- Shika- Cho thing. Sorry you're probably gonna get Sakura." Sasuke apologized, patting Naruto on the back.

"It'll be worse for her, trust me. She's already on my last nerve, and I won't hesitate to sever a limb." Naruto replied, gripping the handle of his Nodachi.

"I almost feel bad for her. Almost." Sasuke said. The doors to the classroom opened. The teachers said their speeches, and told the ones that graduated that tomorrow they would announce their teams. The kids started filing out, Naruto looking towards Mizuki, seeing him talking to one of the kids that failed. _'So he's starting his plan'_ Naruto made a note to talk to the Hokage after talking to his father. Speaking of his father, he and Kurenai were at the gate, waiting for him.

"Well, I see you passed." Nero said, smiling. Kurenai was smiling as well.

"Like there was any doubt." Naruto replied. Nero nodded.

"I think Mizuki is up to something." Naruto told his father, as they were walking away from the academy.

"Well, what do you plan on doing about it?" Nero questioned.

"I think I need to talk to the Hokage. I saw Mizuki talking to one of the students who didn't pass. I don't know what about, but it seemed to cheer the kid up."

"Well, he could've just told him he could try again next year." Nero reasoned, testing his son in his deduction skills.

"I don't think that would have as big an impact on the kid's mood…" Naruto stated.

"Do what you think you need to, Naruto."

"Alright, then, I'm gonna go talk to the Hokage. I'll see you guys at home." Naruto started to walk towards the Hokage's office.

"Good luck." Kurenai said. She turned to face Nero. "Is this that 'Final Test' you were talking about?" She asked her boyfriend.

"Yes. I knew Mizuki was up to something the minute I saw him. I just didn't care enough to do anything about it. This will be a very good test of his skills." Nero answered.

"I hope he does okay…" Kurenai said.

"He will. With everything we trained him in, he'll do just fine." Nero said

"I'm kinda hungry… Wanna get some dango?" Kurenai asked.

"Sure, Kurenai-chan. Let's go." Nero said, grabbing Kurenai's hand as they started walking toward the dango stand.

Hokage Tower

"So, Naruto-kun, you believe Mizuki is trying something, yes?" Sarutobi asked. Naruto had come into Sarutobi's office 5 minutes ago and told the Hokage what he thought Mizuki was up to.

"Yes, Tou-san seems to believe something's up as well. I don't know if he knows, but I'm pretty sure he doesn't care." Naruto replied.

"That sounds like him…" Sarutobi mused, "Back on subject, though, what do you believe we should do?"

"I think that you should have ANBU watching him, but the thing is, what could he be planning?"

"I don't know, could you hear what he was saying to the student?" the Hokage asked.

"Somewhat. I heard something about a special test, he mentioned the scroll of sealing, and I think that's it…" Naruto responded.

"There is no 'special test' for those who failed. And the scroll of sealing… I know what he's planning."

"What is it, old man?" Naruto questioned.

"Naruto-kun, I think I have your first A- rank Mission." The Hokage said, smirking at him. Naruto smirked back.

This was going to be a _very_ interesting day…

Konoha Forest

"Where is that kid?" Mizuki was beginning to get frustrated. The kid he tricked into stealing the scroll of sealing for him hadn't shown up. Was he caught?

"Looking for this?" A voice interrupted Mizuki from his musings. He turned around to see Naruto, holding the scroll of sealing.

"How did you-?"

"The kid you duped was caught. He spilled the beans the minute Jiji called for Ibiki. You're despicable. Tricking a kid. You have two choices: Come with me and go to jail, or get sent to the morgue." Naruto said, now frowning.

"How about a third choice? Like I KILL YOU!" Mizuki charged. Naruto threw the scroll back into a tree and swiftly, in one movement, drew his Nodachi and severed Mizuki's right arm. He then spun around to Mizuki's back and stabbed him through the chest, piercing his heart.

"Fool." Naruto said, then ripped his blade out of Mizuki's body. He wiped the blood off of the blade, sheathed it, grabbed the scroll, and headed back to the Hokage Tower, even as ANBU began to clean up the sight.

Hokage Tower

"I'm impressed, Naruto-kun. I didn't expect you to get this done so quickly." Sarutobi said as Naruto handed him the scroll. "Here's the payment for an A- ranked mission." He handed Naruto a slip.

"Thank you. If that's all, I have something important to do tonight." Naruto said, putting the slip into one of his coat pockets.

"Of course, have a nice night, Naruto-kun." Naruto nodded and teleported to his mansion.

Namikaze Mansion

Nero and Kurenai were snuggled up next to each other on the sofa, just loving being around each other, when Nero heard the sound of the dimensional ripping that comes with **Teleportation**. He turned his head to see Naruto staring at the two of them.

"Am I interrupting something?" He asked.

"Not really." Kurenai said.

"So, how'd you do?" Nero asked.

"I killed him. The scroll is safe." Naruto responded.

"Good. That means you're ready to meet my lord and your mother."

"You mean, if I hadn't kept the scroll safe, you wouldn't have taken me to the Kitsune realm?" Naruto asked, surprised.

"That's right. Think of it as my final exam. You proved you're ready. No normal genin would've been able to fight Mizuki and win. You proved that you listened when I taught you. And, for what it's worth, I'm very proud of you." Nero said, a small smile forming on his lips. Kurenai was smiling as well.

"So, when do you want to leave?" Nero asked.

"As soon as possible." Naruto replied.

"Alright, we leave in an hour. Meet me in the courtyard by then." Naruto nodded, then left the room.

"You're going to the fox realm tonight?" Kurenai asked.

"Yes. I believe Naruto's real mother is there, as well as the fact that my lord should be able to release the seal on my power, then I'll be able to officially make you my mate." Nero said, kissing her.

When they broke apart, Kurenai asked, "When will you be back?"

"I don't exactly know, but we'll be back by tomorrow, so that Naruto will know what team he'll be on." Kurenai nodded.

"So, we have an hour before you leave?" Kurenai asked, smirking at him.

"Yes."

"What do you want to do in the meantime?" She asked, leaning closer to him.

"I'm sure we'll think of something." he said, before he lifted her bridal style and carried her off to the bedroom.

Namikaze Courtyard (one hour later)

"Have fun?" Naruto asked Nero, who had shown up looking oddly happy.

"If you must know, yes, yes I did." he responded, still smiling.

"Your smile is starting to creep me out, Tou-san." at that, Nero resumed his usual face.

"All right, then, are you ready?" Nero asked. Naruto nodded.

"Okay. Remember, you are NOT going to direct where we are going. I will supply that. You just perform the technique and I'll direct us to the Kitsune realm. Ready?"

Naruto nodded, and with a ripping sound, they were gone.

Kitsune Realm (Entrance to Chamber of Inari)

A familiar ripping sound filled the air, and then standing there were Nero and Naruto. Naruto looked around in amazement and shock. They were in front of a giant gate with a fox head covering it. On either side of the gate were two fox statues, both sitting down, seemingly standing guard. Naruto could swear they were almost alive, with the energy they were giving off.

"Still loves the theatrics, I see." Nero remarked, chuckling lightly. He walked up to the gate, Naruto following behind him. He put one hand on the gate and the eyes of the foxes turned crimson red for a moment, then an unlocking sound was heard. Nero pushed on the gate, and the doors opened. Naruto was gob smacked at the room.

The room itself was nothing special, a stark contrast to the door. The furniture in the room was all a matching color of either gold or crimson red, as were the walls.

"He REALLY hasn't changed."

"Neither have you." A voice said. They both turned to see who it was.

The man they saw was over 6 feet tall. He had dark brown hair, blue- green eyes, and broad shoulders. He was wearing black pants and a red shirt. His arms were crossed, and he was smirking. Nero smirked.

"It's god to see you again, old friend." the man remarked, looking at Nero. "And who's this? You have a kit when I wasn't looking?"

"No, my lord. I will fill you in, but may we go somewhere more private." Nero said, looking around.

"Very well. Follow me." He led them into a room much like the first one, only it only had a sofa, three chairs, and a table. There was also a woman sitting on the sofa. She was wearing a red kimono with flower designs going down the left side. She was very beautiful, Naruto noted. She had red hair and beautiful green eyes. She also had fox ears and 8 tails, the same color as her hair, flowing behind her.

"Inari-kun, who was it?" she asked.

"Nero." The woman turned around fully to see them. When she saw Naruto, she stopped completely, her eyes widening.

"M-Minato-kun?" Naruto's eyes widened as well. Was this woman…?

"Kaa-chan?" He said hesitantly.

"Naruto… NARUTO!" The woman exclaimed, hugging Naruto with all she had. After a moment, he hugged back with just as much force as her. Both were openly crying. Nero and Inari just stood and waited. After about ten minutes, they had both finally calmed down. Inari motioned for them to sit down. Nero and Naruto sat in chairs, while Inari and Kushina sat on the sofa.

"I know you, Nero. You didn't come here just to reunite Kushina-chan and her son. Why are you here?" Inari asked.

"Believe it or not, my lord, but Naruto is the main reason I'm here. I came here for many things. First, I wanted Naruto to meet his mother. Next, my power was sealed by Minato, your husband." He looked at Kushina, "I was hoping that you could break the seal."

"I have the power to break such a seal. May I see it?" Inari asked. Nero looked to Naruto, who nodded. Naruto stood up and removed his coat and shirt, channeling his chakra as he did. As soon as his shirt was off, the seal was visible. Inari looked at the seal.

"The **Shiki Fuiin**, eh? This is a very powerful seal." Inari said.

"Will you be able to break it?" Nero asked.

"Of course I can. No matter how good he was or who was powering it, _he_ was still human."

"Then what are you?" Naruto asked, finally speaking up.

"Me? I am Inari, the fox god. I am also your mother's mate." Naruto's jaw dropped.

"F-Fox God? Mate?"

"Yes and yes." Inari responded.

"How?"

"How what?"

"How did you two become mates?" Naruto asked.

"The same way everyone else does. We fell in love." Kushina answered, "He pulled me into this realm before Danzo's ROOT ANBU could finish me off. In this realm, I was able to sufficiently heal. I never went back because I thought you were dead. I didn't think I had a reason to go back. But Inari-kun protected me, sheltered me, fed me. I eventually fell for him, and we mated."

"But you and tou-san…"

"Minato was 100 percent human. He wasn't able to mark me as his, though I marked him as mine. As Inari-kun is… well, Inari-kun, he was able to mark me. That's for life."

"So, in a sense, I'm your step-dad." Inari explained. Naruto nodded his head.

"Okay, but what makes the fox god so powerful? I thought that Kyuubi was the highest position." Naruto asked

"The fox god is the strongest Kitsune ever. If a Kitsune appeared with the potential to surpass me, I would step down. As the Fox god, I am a supernatural entity, much like the Shinigami that sealed Nero in you. That is why I can break the seal. I am much stronger than Nero is."

"How strong exactly?" Naruto asked.

"About 10 times stronger than Nero. Though, if I ever _really_ want to kill someone, no one would be able to stop me."

"Wow…" was all Naruto could say.

"Now then, about that seal…" Inari looked at the seal for another moment, before cracking his knuckles. He looked up at Naruto and said, "This is going to hurt. A lot." Inari put his hand on the seal and grasped it. His hand begun to glow red with youki. He then twisted his hand like one would a doorknob. Naruto immediately felt a searing pain. Nero's youki rapidly started to leave Naruto's body and headed towards Nero, his body absorbing it. Naruto, meanwhile, was trying his hardest not to cry out.

Kushina was looking worriedly between her son and her mate. Almost as if he read her thoughts, Inari said, "It's going to be alright, Kushi-chan." hearing that, she nodded, but still looked worried.

After about ten minutes, Inari was able to get the seal all the way open. Naruto was now resting on the couch, his head in Kushina's lap. He had passed out halfway through. Energy was still coming out of Naruto's body in waves, though not as much as it started out with. Inari guessed that it was almost done.

After another five minutes, the energy finally stopped. Nero looked towards the others. "It's done. All of my power's back."

"Good. He should wake up shortly, then." Kushina perked up at that.

Not a minute later, Naruto woke up, seeing his mother smiling down at him.

"Hey, Kaa-chan." He said.

"Morning, sunshine." Inari said. Naruto looked towards him.

"Nero's power is out of you. That means that I can awaken your own now." Inari stated. Naruto looked at him.

"Isn't my power already active? I mean, Tou-san was training me in the Kitsune arts."

"Yes, but you were using his power. You didn't notice it because it's been in you since birth. But now that Nero's power is gone, I can make your Kitsune nature active. You won't have as much youki as you used to, obviously." Inari stated. Naruto nodded.

"Okay, do it." Naruto said. Inari stood up. He walked over and put his hand on Naruto's head.

"This won't hurt, don't worry." Naruto nodded, again. Inari's hands glowed red once more, for a moment, then, Naruto felt an enormous rush of power flow out of him. After a minute, Inari removed his hand.

"There you go." He said. Naruto sat up.

"I thought it would hurt more than that." He said, scratching his head. He then felt something on top of his head. "What the.." Inari motioned towards a mirror. Rushing toward it, his eyes widened at what he saw.

He now had blonde fox ears and two fox tails.

"Two tails already. Impressive." Inari remarked.

"What did you do to me?" Naruto questioned.

"He awakened your Kitsune heritage." Kushina answered, "Because of the seal, your Kitsune nature was suppressed. Inari-kun made it active."

"I can't go around the human world with fox ears and tails!"

"So use a **Kitsune Henge**." Inari responded. "No human can see through one, because there's nothing to see. It's a real transformation, remember?"

"Oh yeah." He activated the **Henge**. He now looked the same as he did before the fox tails. "Thanks."

"That's not all I came for." Nero said. Everyone looked toward him.

"What else?" Kushina asked. Inari looked at the sword on Naruto's waist.

"You want me to give him a sword." Inari stated.

"Yes. That blade is a normal human blade, albeit a little stronger. He needs a Kitsune- made blade." Nero explained.

"Very well. Gather around me." they al stood up and got near Inari, and there was a familiar ripping sound, and then they were gone.

Blacksmith Shop

The ripping sound filled the air, and the four Kitsune had appeared. Naruto looked around.

"Where are we now?" he asked.

"We're at the shop of the blacksmith who forged Nero's Chishoku." Inari answered.

"Chishoku?"

"The name of my blade." Nero answered this time.

"So he's gonna make me a sword?" Naruto asked.

"If he feels like it. Kizuku only makes weapons if he feels like it." Kushina responded.

"Who the hell's in my shop?" They heard a gruff voice. Naruto saw a big burly man with 7 tails walk out of the back room. The man had black shoulder length hair tied back into a ponytail. His tails and ears were the same color as his hair, as were his eyes. He was wearing a blacksmith's apron over plain black pants and a tan short sleeved shirt.

"Who's- oh, I'm sorry, Inari-sama, I didn't know it was you." The man said, quickly bowing.

"Don't worry about it. I'm actually here as a customer."

"Is there a problem with Nensho Tenshi?" Kizuku asked.

"No, she's fine. I'm just paying for it. I actually came here with a kit who needs a weapon." Inari responded.

"That him?" Kizuku asked, pointing to Naruto.

"Yeah, and just so you know, he was trained by Nero and he's Kushina's kit." Inari said.

"Whoa, quite the resume, eh kit? Come on back, we should get started."

Kizuku led them to the room where he come out of. It had the standard things a blacksmith's shop would have. Kizuku motioned toward a table. They sat down at it while he headed toward some of the metal slabs on the wall.

"How long do you want it?"

"Well, I'm used to wielding a Nodachi, so I'd like it to be the same length as the one I'm currently wielding." He put his Nodachi on the table. Kizuku grabbed the blade.

"Oh, great! You already have a sword! This makes things even easier!" Kizuku said.

"What do you mean?" Asked Naruto.

"If you already have a sword, I can just reforge it with your power. It's what I did with Chishoku." replied Kizuku, already at the fire pit. He unsheathed the sword, took the hilt and guard off of the blade, and put it into the fire pit. He used his powers to speed up the process of it melting down. Once it was melted, which only took a few minutes, he took the liquid metal out of the fire pit. He also took some that he was apparently already melting out. He was explaining what he was doing to Naruto.

"I always start with an ordinary metal base. I then mix it with a special metal only found in this realm. That's what makes them unbreakable." He mixed the two metals together. "The power, however, comes from you."

"Me? What do you mean?"

"I think a demonstration would be better. Would one of you care to demonstrate?" Kizuku looked towards Inari and Nero.

"Sure." Inari said.

"He led them outside. Kizuku stayed to watch the metal.

Outside, Inari was standing about 20 feet away from the others. He summoned a 5 foot long katana with a golden handle and a round hand guard. He unsheathed the sword to reveal the blade. The blade itself was silver, but it had an ethereal glow around it. The air around it seemed to shimmer when it moved.

"This is my sword, her name is Nensho Tenshi. This, Naruto, is her power." at that, a pillar of fire surrounded Inari, hiding him from view. When it died down, he became visible. He looked largely the same, save for the fact that his eyes were now gold. His sword, however, now had golden flames dancing around the blade.

"Wow…" Naruto said.

"I had a similar reaction when I saw the blade's power the first time." Nero said. Inari started walking towards the three others there.

"The power of the sword is like a special ability. The sword always facilitates your greatest asset or skill. For me, it's my enormous abilities with fire. Nero's uses his youki to fight. Understand?" Inari asked, deactivating his power. His eyes faded to their usual power and his blade lost the flames. He sheathed his sword.

"I think so."

"Good. Let's go back inside. Kizuku's probably ready for the next step." they walked back inside and, sure enough, he was ready for the next step.

"Naruto, come here." Naruto walked towards Kizuku, while the others sat back down. "You know how to use youki, right?" Seeing Naruto nod, he continued. "Good, then I want you to infuse the metal with your youki. Just funnel your power into the metal."

Naruto nodded and put his hands over the metal. He started to push his youki out into the metal. The metal immediately started glowing a dull blue color. Naruto funneled his youki into the metal for a full 5 minutes before Kizuku told him to stop. Kizuku used flame manipulation to make the metal hotter, then began forming the sword itself.

After 45 minutes he was finished. "Kit, come here and see your new weapon." Kizuku shouted. When Naruto walked in, he saw what he thought was the most beautiful blade he had ever seen. The sword's length had not changed, but that was all that hadn't changed. The handle of the blade was platinum in color, the guard was round with a spiral etched onto it that swirled into the blade. The sheath was still black, though it looked like new again. Kizuku handed it to Naruto. "Try it."

Naruto unsheathed the sword. The blade was beautiful. It was a bright blue in color, seemingly shimmering when Naruto waved it around. "I love it." Naruto said, smiling.

"Come on Naruto, let's see what it can do." Nero said, walking out of the shop. Everyone followed him out. Nero was standing in the clearing, holding Chishoku in his hand.

"Are you sure, Tou-san?" Nero only nodded. Naruto handed the sheath to his mother and took a stance. They glared at one another for a moment before leaping towards one another. Both were going for killing blows, and both were being prevented. Naruto was beginning to be pushed back. Naruto deflected a strike towards his right shoulder, only to be kicked in the stomach, sending him back. Naruto looked towards Nero. Chishoku was glowing a crimson red, the red blade pulsing with energy.

"Come on Naruto. Show me, show your mother, show Inari-sama what that sword can do! Show us what YOU can do!" Nero shouted, swinging his blade diagonally down, an arc of red energy shooting off of it, heading for Naruto.

Naruto stood up, gripping the handle of his blade. The blade began to pulse with energy. With a roar, Naruto swung his blade at Nero's energy blast, causing an explosion. When the smoke cleared, all were impressed with what they saw.

Naruto's eyes were now slitted, his fox features were showing, and his eyes were glowing bright blue, not unlike the color of his sword. And speaking of his sword, the blue blade was pulsing, and blue lightning was dancing around the blade. Naruto immediately charged Nero, and when the two blades clashed, a burst of wind and lightning struck Nero in the chest, sending him reeling back. Naruto was about to attack again, but Inari was in front of him, smiling.

"Good job, kid. I'm impressed. That's quite a sword. Looks like you got another masterpiece, Kizuku!" he shouted to the blacksmith, who grinned brightly. Naruto cancelled the energy flow to his sword, the blade returning to it's normal state. Kushina handed him the sheath, and he sheathed it and put it back on his hip.

"All that's left is to name it." Kizuku said. He looked towards Naruto.

"Doesn't the maker normally name the blades?" Naruto asked.

"Normally, yes. I don't, though. I'm not the one wielding the sword. You are."

Naruto paused in thought, thinking about the fight and what the sword could do. "I've got it." He put his hand on the pommel of the sword. "Kaminari Arashi."

"A fine name." Inari stated. The others nodded. "Well, we have more to deal with, we should get back to the chamber. It was good seeing you again, Kizuku."

"Same here. Good luck, kid. Make good use of that sword." Naruto nods.

"I will. Thank you." Naruto replied, bowing.

They teleported back to the chamber.

Chamber of Inari

The next thing they knew, they were back in the room they met Kushina in.

"So tell me, Nero, is there anything else?" Inari asked, sitting down on the sofa, Kushina next to him.

"Yes, actually. I want you to give Naruto the fox contract."

"Of course." Inari summoned a giant scroll onto the table and opened it. Listed on it were Inari's name, Nero's, as well as Kushina's.

"Just sign your name in blood there." Naruto did as instructed. Inari then rolled up the scroll and teleported it away.

"That's all I came here for." Nero said.

"So, Kaa-chan, are you coming back with us?" Naruto asked.

"No, Naruto-kun, I'm not. My place is here. You are at the age that you can take care of yourself. You don't need me anymore." Naruto looked down. "But I will drop by every now and then to check up on you." He smiled at that.

"Naruto." Naruto turned towards Inari, who handed him a scroll.

"What is it?"

"In that scroll is a summoning seal. If you use it, I will be summoned. Use it only if you and Nero cannot win."

"Hai." Naruto responded. He tucked the scroll in his coat. "Well then, I guess we should be going. Right, Nero?" Nero nodded. Naruto hugged Kushina one more time, then said goodbye to Inari. Nero put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, bid the two of them farewell, and teleported them back to Konoha. Inari put his arm around Kushina's waist and pulled her to him.

"You'll see him again." He said.

"I know. I just can't believe that I missed 12 years of his life."

"You can make up for that. Just be there when he needs you." Inari said. Kushina turned so that she was facing him.

"How is it you always know what to say?"

"It's a gift." He smiled down at her. "I love you, Kushi-chan."

"I love you too, Inari-kun." she moved up to kiss him.

After a moment, they separated. Kushina grabbed Inari's hand and led him into their bedroom.

"You, my dear, are the definition of a vixen." he said, smirking.

"Damn straight." he shut the door behind him before she pulled him onto the bed. They didn't sleep much that night.

**And done! This chapter just would not end! **

**Anyway, I don't know if anyone's noticed, but there is a poll on my profile that directly relates to this story. I will not be updating this until I get a response, mostly because I need to know what you want to see. Worry not, though, I will be releasing a new story sometime soon, probably next week. Look forward to it!**

**Next chapter: assembling the teams and going to Wave!**

**READ AND REVIEW OR I SHALL CALL ON THE ANCIENT POWER OF BRUCE LEE TO POUND YOU INTO THE NEXT CENTURY!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I own only Nero, Inari, and any weapons I come up with.**

**Not much to say here, so enjoy!**

Naruto was sitting at the table, eating his breakfast.

'_Wonder whose team I'll be on…_' he mused. Little did he know, that very conversation was going on right now…

Hokage Tower

"So, what teams do you request?" Sarutobi asked

A bearded man who looked like he was related to Sarutobi stepped forward. "I'll take the new Ino- Shika- Cho team." he said. Sarutobi nodded and wrote it down. Kurenai stepped forward.

"I would like to create a tracker team." She stated. Sarutobi nodded again and wrote it down.

"And Kakashi…" a man with silver hair, a face mask, and his headband pulled over his left eye stepped forward.

"Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"I have decided that, given your skill and your previous teacher, you should teach Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze, Sakura Haruno, and-"

"Sasuke Uchiha." Nero finished for him. All of the Jonin turned to face him, though Kurenai was the only one smiling.

"But Sasuke wasn't the dead- last." One of the Jonin stated.

"True, but judging on the way that your system works, pairing my son with the dead last of the academy would not work. None of my son's abilities can be taught to a human child, and he will not work with the Haruno girl, given that she is, for lack of a better word, useless. It would make more sense to have at least one person on Naruto's team that will back him up, and he and Sasuke work extremely well together."

"How do you know that?" Another asked.

"Sasuke trains often at Naruto's house, and I drilled them in group combat strategies myself. Trust me, the two of them work better together than the Shodai and Nidaime Hokages."

"Really?" Sarutobi asked.

"Yes." Nero said.

"Very well. Team 7 will consist of Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno, sensei'd by Kakashi Hatake. I will put the other team requests into consideration. Dismissed." The Jonin quickly filed out of the room. Nero and Kurenai left together. Kurenai had been happy all day, most likely because Nero had taken Kurenai as his mate the night before.

"Hey Nero!" Kakashi called after them. Nero stopped and turned around.

"Yes?"

"What did you mean by Naruto's abilities can't be taught to a human? Isn't he human?" Kakashi asked.

"Technically, no. His mother is like me." he replied.

"Kushina was a Kitsune?" he asked.

"Not was. _Is_." Nero said.

"She's still alive? Where is she?" he asked.

"It is not my secret to tell. If you want to know, ask Naruto. And don't tell _anyone_. If you do…" he trailed off. Kakashi nodded.

"Also, if you wish to keep all of your limbs, I suggest you don't show up late. My son isn't as _patient_ as I am." Nero said, walking away, holding hands with Kurenai.

Namikaze Compound

Naruto tied Kaminari Arashi to his waist, ready to head out to the academy, when Nero and Kurenai walked in.

"Hey, Gaki." Nero said.

"Hey, Tou-san, Kurenai." he said, "I was about to head to the academy."

"Try not to kill any of your classmates or teammates." Kurenai said. She had taken to saying that whenever Naruto went to the academy, as she knew he inherited Nero's love of severing limbs.

"I'll try." He said, smirking.

"Remember: An ally today is an enemy tomorrow, and…"

"Teamwork is integral to survival." Naruto finished. Nero nodded. Naruto headed toward the door.

"Later." He said.

Konoha Academy

Naruto walked into the classroom. He took his usual seat next to Sasuke.

"Hey." Sasuke greeted.

"Yo." Naruto replied.

"New sword?" Sasuke asked, noticing the different handle.

"Yeah. I'll show it to you later." Naruto said. Sasuke nodded, and leaned back, Naruto already doing the same.

"3, 2, 1..." they counted off at the same time. And thus begun the usual battle for the seat next to Sasuke.

It ended as usual, with Ino taking her seat upon seeing that Naruto was sitting there, knowing better than to mess with the blonde Namikaze. Sakura however?

Naruto didn't even give her time to yell. "Shut up Sakura." She would've yelled then, but Naruto's sword was now at her throat, blade seemingly shimmering with bloodlust. "Shut up." He repeated, now glaring at her. She gulped, then nodded. Naruto sheathed his sword and returned to his previous sitting position. Sakura shakily sat in her seat. Iruka walked in 5 minutes later.

"Hello, everyone." He said with a smile, "Today you'll find out which teams you will be on, as well as who your teammates are."

He began announcing the teams "Team 1 will be…" Naruto mostly drowned them out until he heard his name. "Team 7 will be Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze, Sakura Haruno," a "Crap" was heard from Naruto, "and Sasuke Uchiha." a "YEAH!" was heard from Sakura. Naruto looked towards Sasuke.

"Well, at least there's ONE person on my team who won't drive me nuts." He said. Sasuke smirked

"Same here." he replied.

"Their sensei will be Kakashi Hatake. Team 8 will be Hinata Hyuuga, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame. Their sensei will be Kurenai Yuuhi. Team 9 is still in circulation, so team 10 will be Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, and Choji Akimichi. Their sensei will be Asuma Sarutobi. Your Jonin sensei's will pick you up from this room when they arrive." not five minutes after he said that, Asuma and Kurenai walked in the room and retrieved their teams.

Roughly ten minutes after that, Kakashi walked into the room.

"Kakashi! You're early! Well, for you, anyway…" Iruka said surprised.

"Yeah, well, I heard from Nero that Naruto isn't very patient." Kakashi whispered to Iruka, who nodded.

"Team 7, meet me on the roof." He said, before disappearing via leaf Shunshin. Sasuke followed suit, while Naruto teleported to the roof. Sakura was forced to walk (HA!).

Academy Rooftop

Kakashi arrived at the rooftop in seconds. He was surprised, however, to find Naruto already there, with Sasuke appearing not 3 seconds later.

"How'd you get here before me Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"Teleportation. It's instant movement, opposed to very fast movement like the Shunshin." Naruto explained.

"Like the Hiraishin?" Kakashi asked.

"No. It's faster, though mine's less precise. I can't use it in battle yet, though Tou-san has shown me how it's used in battle. In short, you don't want to be on the receiving end of it." Naruto said. Surprised, Kakashi could only nod in understanding.

Eventually, Sakura showed up.

"Now that we're all here, why don't we introduce ourselves?"

"You first. As our future sensei, we, specifically I, have to know if we can trust you." Naruto said.

"You sound as if you expect me to betray you."

"A friend today is an enemy tomorrow." Kakashi nodded.

"All right. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I like Icha Icha, I dislike people who hate Icha Icha and fan girls. My Hobbies are reading Icha Icha, and a lot of other stuff that isn't really important right now. My dream, well, I never really thought about it much. My specialties are ninjutsu and my Sharingan eye." He said, lifting up his headband briefly so they could see it.

"Where did you get that?" Sasuke asked.

"My dear, dear friend gave it to me to save our other teammate." Kakashi said, pulling his headband back down. Naruto nodded.

"Okay, I'll trust you, for now at least." he said.

"Thanks. Okay, you first pinkie." Kakashi said, pointing to Sakura.

"I'm Sakura Haruno, and I like…(Looks at Sasuke) my hobbies…(Looks at Sasuke) my dream…(Looks at Sasuke and squeals)."

"And what about dislikes and specialties?" Kakashi asked.

"I hate Naruto-baka and Ino-pig! My specialties? Well, I have good chakra control…" she said.

'_Great, a fan girl… maybe I can get Kurenai or Anko to help me get rid of that._' Kakashi thought.

"Uchiha, you're next." Kakashi said, pointing to Sasuke.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I like my Nii-san and my Kaa-chan, my friends, and hanging out with Naruto. I dislike fan girls, sweet things, and my Tou-san, for reasons I'd rather not discuss. My hobbies are training, mostly. My dream is to make my clan proud of me, and help my brother lead it to greatness. My specialties lie in my clan's jutsu and my Sharingan."

"You've unlocked the Sharingan?" Kakashi asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I unlocked it during a spar with Naruto. He nearly cut my arm off."

"You tried to set me on fire. I retaliated." Naruto responded.

"Wow. So, how strong are you two?" Kakashi asked.

"I'm roughly high Chunin, according to my brother." Sasuke replied.

"I'm High Jonin in taijutsu and kenjutsu. I'm high Chunin in everything else." Naruto replied, tapping the handle of his Nodachi.

"Impressive. Oh, Naruto, your turn."

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki- Namikaze. I like my Tou-san, my Kaa-chan, Inari-san, Kurenai, and my friends. I dislike arrogant people, fan girls, and people who can't see past their own beliefs. My hobbies are training, pranking, and hanging out with Sasuke. My dream is to resurrect my clans, and succeed my Tou-san."

"Which Tou-san?"

"Both, I guess. Being Hokage would be cool, and taking Tou-san's place could take thousands of years."

"Okay. Specialties?"

"Kenjutsu, Taijutsu, and I plan on also specializing in ninjutsu as soon as my Nature manipulation gets better."

"Alright. Meet me at training ground 7 at 10 tomorrow for the Genin test."

"But sensei, we already passed the test!" Sakura said, confused.

"That was just a way to weed out the ones that wouldn't stand a chance at passing. Oh, and I'd advise you not eat, unless you like throwing up." he said, leaving in a Shunshin.

"So a final exam, huh? Sounds fun." Naruto said, grinning.

"Yeah. I hope we'll get to fight him." Sasuke said

"Yeah, that would be really fun."

"Are you nuts? He's a Jonin!" Sakura said.

"So? I've survived spars with my Tou-san, who is stronger than my birth Tou-san, the Yondaime Hokage. Rank does not equal strength. If it did, I'd be a Jonin already." Naruto said.

"Besides," Sasuke said, "It's not likely he'd fight us at full strength. Well, he might if he was facing you." He pointed at Naruto, who only grinned in response.

"True. Well," He said, standing up, "I'm going to Ichiraku's, you coming?" Naruto asked, looking towards Sasuke.

"Sure, got nothing better to do." they both disappeared, leaving Sakura alone on the roof.

Ichiraku's Ramen Bar

Naruto and Sasuke appeared in front of Ichiraku's. Sasuke wobbled.

"Dammit Naruto! I told you, if you're going to teleport me with you, warn me first!" He shouted. Naruto chuckled.

"But it's funnier this way." He said. Sasuke grumbled. They walked inside.

"Hey, Teuchi-oji, Ayame-nee, your favorite customer is here!" Naruto shouted.

"Hey, Naruto! Oh, you brought Sasuke with you this time?" Ayame asked. Naruto often brought Sasuke with him when he went to get Ichiraku's, so she wasn't surprised to se him.

"Yup. The usual please." Naruto said, sitting down on his barstool.

"Same." Sasuke said, sitting next to him. Ayame told the orders to her dad, who was in the kitchen. She leaned her elbows on the counter.

"So, you two on the same team?" she asked.

"Yeah, actually." Naruto says.

"It makes things a lot simpler." Sasuke adds.

"Good for you guys!" she says.

"Ayame, Pickup!" Teuchi Shouts from the kitchen.

"Be right back." She says dashing into the kitchen. She comes back out with their ramen, which Naruto practically inhales the second it's put in front of him. Sasuke eats slower, while Naruto orders seconds.

"Your paying for this." Sasuke says to Naruto, who was already on his fifth bowl.

"Sure." Naruto says between bowls.

After 10 bowls for Naruto, and 4 for Sasuke, they said goodbye to Ayame and Teuchi.

"That was good!" Naruto says, patting his stomach.

"Yeah, it was. You're still a glutton, though." Sasuke says.

"Ass." Naruto replies.

"What do you think the Genin test will be?" Sasuke wonders aloud.

"Dunno. I heard that it differs from Jonin to Jonin. We'll know when he tells us what it is. One thing, though," Naruto says, "eat breakfast. You'll need your strength." Sasuke nods.

"See you, Naruto." Sasuke says, starting to head towards the Uchiha clan compound.

"Later." Naruto says, and heads toward his own house.

Namikaze Compound

Naruto made his way to the kitchen, only to see Nero and Kurenai sitting at the table.

"Hey, Tou-san, Kurenai." he said.

"Hey." They said.

"I met my team today." Naruto said.

"Who's on it?" Nero asked.

"Well, sadly, Sakura's on it. But on the plus side, Sasuke is too. Our sensei is some guy named Kakashi Hatake."

"Do you trust them?" Nero asked.

"I trust Sasuke. I don't trust Sakura. It's too soon to tell about Kakashi." Naruto said.

"Smart. Though, give Kakashi a chance. He was Minato's student, and I'm sure that, given your relation, he at least wouldn't betray you." Nero said. Naruto nodded.

"Hey, Tou-san, do you know anything about the Genin test that the sensei's give their future teams?" Naruto asked.

"Somewhat, though if you're trying to find out what Kakashi will be doing, stop now. I don't know, and if I did, you know I wouldn't tell you."

"I'm not trying to find out what he's gonna do. I was hoping for more background information."

"Better ask Kurenai-chan, then. She's a Jonin, too, Naruto. She'll know more than me." Nero said, looking at Kurenai.

"Okay. Kurenai, what exactly is the purpose of it?" Naruto asked, now also looking at Kurenai.

"Well, Naruto-kun, it's a mix of things. One, it's an exam, as I'm sure Kakashi told you." Seeing Naruto nod, she continued, "Two, it's so that the sensei's know what you're capable of. We need to know what you can do to be able to train you, as well as what you need to improve upon, and what you've already mastered." Kurenai explained. Naruto nodded.

"Alright. Can you tell me any thing about Kakashi?" Naruto inquired.

"Only that he's one of the villages strongest Jonin. I honestly don't know that much about him." Kurenai said with a shrug.

"Thanks." Naruto said. He walked into the kitchen, coming out a few minutes later with a ramen cup. He walked into the living room and sat on the sofa, eating out of the cup.

'_What will the test be tomorrow?_' he thought.

Uchiha Compound

"Kaa-chan, Nii-san, I'm home." Sasuke said, walking into his house. He didn't get a response.

'_That's unusual…_' he thought. He always got a response from his mother when he came home. He walked through the house, looking to find his mother, brother, or even his father. He walked towards his parent's room, and heard shouting.

"You'd betray the clan!" he heard his father shout.

"No. _You _betrayed the clan when you decided to betray Konoha, father." Sasuke heard his brother say calmly.

"Please, Fugaku, don't do this." his mother pleaded.

"SHUT UP YOU BITCH!" he heard a slap, which he guessed was Fugaku hitting Mikoto. He then heard the sound of a bone cracking, and he looked into the room and saw his father on the ground and his brother standing over him with his arm extended out. Itachi saw Sasuke.

"Hello Otouto." Itachi said in his usual tone. He gestured towards their mother.

"Tend to her, Sasuke." he said. Sasuke rushed over to his downed mother and helped her up.

"Are you alright, Kaa-chan?" He asked. She nodded.

"I'm fine, Sochi." She said, standing up. Sasuke held onto her. Fugaku stood up as well, fury evident on his face

"How dare you! I am the head of the Uchiha clan and your Tou-san!" he shouted, Sharingan blazing. Itachi activated his Sharingan as well.

"I no longer consider you my Tou-san, and as for the clan head, the Sandaime has known about your planned betrayal for years. He has given me permission to end you at any time, and I would become the new clan head." Fugaku's eyes widened. He had _known_?

"How?" Fugaku said.

"The Sandaime is not as blind as you think. Nero appearing in the village changed everything. Naruto is powerful, Sasuke has friends, and the Uchiha have lost some of our arrogance."

"You would keep the clan under the thumb of the Senju?" Fugaku asked. Itachi shook his head.

"Tou-san. This village was built by the Uchiha and the Senju. We are just as important as the Senju were. The only difference is that the Uchiha were bitter about the Shodai not being an Uchiha." Fugaku's scowl deepens.

"The Uchiha are the most powerful clan in the world!" Fugaku shouts.

"Such arrogance. I see now that there is no hope for you, Tou-san. Farewell." Itachi says. Fugaku rushes him. Itachi meets him halfway there, and they meet, fist to fist. Fugaku tries to hit him with his other fist, but Itachi ducks down and performs a leg sweep, knocking him off of his feet. Fugaku rolls backwards and begins making hand signs. Itachi doesn't even give him the chance. He quickly dashes forward and throws a kunai he kept on him. Fugaku dodged, only to be hit in the head by a roundhouse kick, which sent him through the door. Fugaku looked up to see Itachi standing over him.

"Still think you're an elite?" Itachi asked. Fugaku snarled and charged again. Itachi quickly knocked him back down. Fugaku moved to get back up while Itachi grabbed the kunai he had thrown.

"DIE!" Fugaku shouted, once again running towards Itachi. When his fist made contact, however, "Itachi" poofed out of existence.

"A Kage Bunshin? How?" Fugaku felt a pain in his back.

"You need to pay more attention, Tou-san." Itachi said behind him, stabbing the kunai into Fugaku's spinal column. He then twisted the kunai, breaking Fugaku's spine. Fugaku fell to the floor, screaming. Itachi walked so that he was facing his father.

"Pathetic." Was all that he said before he stabbed his father in the heart, killing him. He left the kunai embedded into Fugaku's corpse. He walked back into the room, where Sasuke and Mikoto still were.

"Is he…" Sasuke asked, getting a nod from his brother.

"Yes. It is done. He is dead." Itachi said. Sasuke sighed in relief.

"So that makes you the clan head, right, Nii-san?" Sasuke asked.

"Technically, Kaa-chan is in charge until Sandaime-sama makes thee decree official. To do that, I have to report to him. Can you take care of things here, Otouto?" Itachi asked, getting a nod from Sasuke. Itachi shunshined to the Hokage tower to tell the Sandaime what happened. Sasuke, meanwhile, tended to his mother.

"I'm fine, Sochi. It was only a slap. I AM a Jonin, remember?" she said. Sasuke nodded and let go of her. She summoned a few ANBU from the clan that were loyal to the village and they began to clean up the site while her and Sasuke went to the living room to await Itachi.

Hokage Tower

Itachi was currently standing before the Hokage, relaying the details of everything that had happened tonight. After he finished, Sarutobi stood up and began to walk out of his office, motioning for Itachi to follow him. Sarutobi summoned two ANBU.

"I want one of you to bring Mikoto Uchiha to the council chamber, and the other to bring Nero and Naruto. Dismissed." the ANBU shunshined to their respective destinations.

Council Chamber

The entire council, both shinobi and civilian, were gathered in the chamber.

"Why have you called us here, Hokage-sama?" one civilian council member asked.

"I have called you here to announce two important changes. First, Fugaku Uchiha is dead." There were gasps coming from the civilian council, and looks of surprise from the Shinobi council.

"How did he die, Hokage-sama?" another council member asked.

"Itachi killed him." Nero said, arriving with Naruto, Kurenai, Mikoto, and Itachi behind him. There were more gasps and more looks.

"Why are you here, Nero-san?" Shibi Aburame asked.

"Ask the old man." was all he said. Seeing the looks, Sarutobi responded to the question.

"He is here because this is an important announcement. Though not a clan head, he does have a great deal of importance to Konoha. Naruto is here because he is a clan head, though still young. As for Kurenai…" the old man trailed off.

"She's here because, as far as my people are concerned, she's my wife." that got looks of shock from everyone, including Sarutobi.

"How… When…?" Was all he could say.

"When? Last night. How? Simple, I'm back to full power." That made the civilians almost piss themselves.

"How did that happen?" Sarutobi asked.

"None of your business." Nero replied. Sarutobi decided not to press.

"Very well, then. We are getting off track. Now then, as was previously stated, Itachi indeed killed Fugaku. However, given certain evidence, I have decided that Itachi is not guilty of any crime. It appears that Fugaku was planning to overthrow me, and Itachi killed him to prevent it. Now, Itachi had suspected that Fugaku was planning this for quite some time, and had told me of his suspicions. I and he had reached an agreement that, should this very thing happen, that he would be made clan head upon his father's death. This is the second reason I called you here. Itachi Uchiha is now the clan head of the Uchiha clan." the shinobi council merely nodded at this revelation. They had never liked Fugaku, and it was normal for the child to succeed the parent. The civilians, well, most of them had fainted upon hearing that Nero was back to full power.

"Anything else, Hokage-sama?" Shikaku Nara asked.

"No. Dismissed." The shinobi half left, save Nero, Naruto, Kurenai, Mikoto, and Itachi. The civilians left immediately, not wanting to be near Nero at this moment.

"So, how's Sasuke taking all this?" Naruto asked Itachi.

"Fairly well. He seems more concerned for Kaa-san than anything else."

"I'm not surprised. He never liked Fugaku." Naruto replied. Itachi nodded.

"So you and Nero are married?" Mikoto asked Kurenai, who blushed, then nodded.

"Kind of. We're his equivalent of married. I'm his mate. I'll live as long as he does, and I'm like him now." Kurenai answered.

"So you're a Kitsune now?"

"Yes. He turned me into one last night." Kurenai's eyes glazed over, remembering the events of last night, and how Nero marked her.

"ooh! Looks like someone had fun last night!" Mikoto said. Kurenai blushed even more.

"*Ahem* Ladies." Nero said, dragging them out of their conversation.

"Now then, Mikoto, you are fine with letting Itachi become the clan head?" Sarutobi asked.

"Yes."

"Nero? What are your thoughts on this matter?" Sarutobi questioned.

"Well, killing Fugaku was a step in the right direction, but he wasn't the only Uchiha planning the coup, was he, Itachi?" Nero looked towards Itachi, who nodded.

"You are correct in assuming that. No, there were others. My father was just the leader. What are you suggesting we do?" Itachi asked.

"Simple. Deal with the traitors." Nero replied.

"Are you suggesting we wipe out the Uchiha clan?" Sarutobi asked, surprised.

"Not the whole clan. Just the conspirators. Do any of you seriously think that, just by killing Fugaku, the coup won't happen? It might be slowed down a bit, but you haven't prevented it. There just isn't a leader. To successfully prevent it from ever happening, all of the conspirators must be killed."

"Do you think we could reason with them?" Sarutobi asked.

"Not likely, but with Fugaku dead, they may be willing to. It all depends on how good you are at negotiations. Try it if you feel you should, but if negotiations fail, alert myself and Itachi." Nero said.

"Thank you, Nero."

"No problem, old man. Can I go now?"

"Yes, you and Naruto may leave." Nero, Naruto, and Kurenai headed for the door.

"Tell Sasuke I'll see him tomorrow." Naruto said as they were leaving. Itachi nodded his head.

"Mikoto-san, Itachi-kun, I need you to bring the Uchiha elders here, along with anyone of your clan who played a big part in organizing the coup." Itachi and Mikoto nodded, then shunshined to the Uchiha compound.

"I'm too old for this shit." Sarutobi said, sitting back in his chair.

**And done! Finally! Sorry it's so short, though. I tried to make it longer, but I couldn't.**

**Anyway, I know I promised that I would start the wave arc, but I'm starting to lose my muse for this story. So, sorry to say, I'm putting this story on a brief hiatus. Probably for about a month. During this hiatus, I'm gonna focus more on my Shinigami ninja story. I WILL come back to this, though, I promise.**

**Forever in the Sky, **

**The Red Star**


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